Lock for elevator doors and the like



July 23, 1935. c. F. EISENBART v LUCK FOR ELEVATOR DOORS AND THE LIKE Filed Oct. 9, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet l 36/)- N )v A 32 -21 31- 3,2 19 i M 33 20 35 25 2 6 7 29 28 p u E "27 July 23, 1935. c. F. EISENBART 2,003,665

LOCK FOR ELEVATOR DOORS AND THE LIKE Filed Oct. 9, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 July 23, 1935. c. F. EISENBART 2,008,665

LOCK FOR ELEVATOR DOORS AND THE LIKE Filed Oct. 9, 195 I5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented July 23, 1935 PATENT OFFICE LOOK FOR ELEVATOR DOORS AND THE LIKE

Charles F. Eisenbart, New Haven, Conn.

Application October 9, 1934, Serial No. 747,504 19 Claims. (01. 187-451 This invention relates to door. looks or fasteners and more particularly a device for securing in closed position the door of an elevator shaft.

It is usually required that the door closing the entrance to the shaft in which an elevator car or cage moves shall ordinarily be secured against being opened except when the car orcage is opposite the floor upon which the door is located. Looks or closure fasteners for doors of this kind should therefore be arranged so that the lock or fastener for the door will not be operableby the ordinary means until the elevator arrives at the floor, and by some arrangement renders the lock operable. There is usually provided, of course, some means by which the door may be opened in an emergency even when the car is not at the floor, but this emergency means is not ordinarily used. When, however, the elevator arrives at the floor upon which the door is located, the lock should be rendered readily and conveniently operable with a minimum amount of effort on the part of the elevator operator.

One object of this invention, therefore, is'to provide a lock or fastener for doors of this character so that the door may be opened by the ordinary means only when the elevator car is opposite the floor upon which the door is located.

Another object of the invention is to provide a lock or fastener for doors of this character such that when the elevator comes opposite the. floor upon which the door is located, the lock will be placed in such condition that the door may be opened by slight pressure applied thereto in an opening direction.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of afastener for elevator doors such that the mechanism of the fastener will be tripped by means upon the elevator cage or car when it arrives opposite the floor upon which the door is located and thereby placed in position where, while it will be releasably held in closed position, it may be opened with a minimum of effort by pressure upon the door in an opening direction.

A still further object of the invention'is the provision of a lock or closure fastener of this character which will operate with 'a minimum amount of friction.

To these and other ends, theinvention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. l is an elevational View of a lock or closure fastener embodying my invention, the cover of the lock being removed to show the operating parts;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional View of the lock showing the parts in closed position wherein the door cannot be opened by theordinary means;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the lock mechanism after it has been tripped or set in position to open the door by the arrival of the elevator cage at the floor upon which the door is located;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional View showing the parts of the lock when the door is in open position;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 showing the position ofthe parts of the lock whenthe door is closed and while theelevator cage is still opposite the same floor;

Fig. 6 is a detail sectional of Fig. 4;

Fig. '7 is a sectional view on line 1-] of Fig. 4;

Fig. 8 is a View of a slightly modified form of lock bolt;

Fig. 9 is a somewhat diagrammatic view-showing an application of the inventionto a swinging door;

Fig- 10 is a view of the lock bolt shownin Fi 9;

Fig. 11 is a sectional .view on Fi 8; I

Fig. 12 is an end view of the bolt shown inFigs. 1 to '7; and

Fig. 13 is an end elevational view of the lock showing the tripping mechanism.

View on line 6-6 line .I |'Il of To illustrate a preferred form of my invention,

I have shown an elevator doorv I0, which in this instance is a sliding door, contactingthe door casing or wall I l of the elevator shaft. Mounted upon the door casing is a lock case l2 containing 7 the lock mechanism about tobe described.

7 As shown more particularly in Fig. 2, means are provided to receive and latch or secure within the casing a bolt secured to thedoor. For this purpose, the wall l3 of .the lock casing adja+ cent the door I0 is provided with an opening 14, which opening will be of the same shape as the cross section of the bolt tobe received, which in upper end and into the opening 19 at its lower end.

The stem 29 is provided with a reduced lower end 24, upon the upper portion of which is a collar 25, and a spring 26 reacts between the lower edge of the member l6 and the collar 25 to urge the stem 20 downwardly, as shown in Figs. 1 to 3. The reduced end 24 or" the stem passes loosely through an opening 21 in an actuating plate 28 horizontally disposed in the lower portion of the casing.

The plate 28 is designed to be moved vertically,

as will be hereinafter described, and is guided in its movements by stems 29 and 38 which are secured to the plate and are guided in openings 3| and 32 in a member 33 secured in the lock casing. Springs 34 and 35 surround these stems and urge the actuating plate 28 downwardly by reacting against it when at their lower ends, and against the member 33 at their upper ends. I To the upper end of the stem 29 is secured a member 36 having a cam-shaped opening 31 facing the bolt opening between the members l5 and 16. A guide rod or stem 38 is secured to the upper end of the member 36 and is guided between a block 39 secured at the upper part of the casing and astrap member 46 secured to the block, the member 38 also passing upwardly through an opening 4| in the casing itself.

Adjacent the member 36, an abutment 42 is secured in the casing, which abutment is shown as formed of insulating material and is provided with an opening 43. Upon the abutment 42 may bemounted binding posts 44 and 45, shown more especially in Fig. 1, to which may be connected the wires 46 and 41 constituting a part of the circuit to the elevator-operating motor. The binding posts 44 and extend to and around the front or right-hand edge of the member 42, as shown in Fig. 1.

Adjacent the upper left-hand corner of the lock 'case', as shown in Fig. 1, a swinging lug 48 is pivoted at 49, the lug being provided with a rearwardly projecting member 59 designed to enter the recess 3'! of the member 36 when this member is in raised position. A spring 5| may be provided to react between the wall of the casing and the lug -48 to urge the member 50 into the recess, although the spring may, if desired, be omitted as this action will usually be accomplished by gravity.

The actuating plate 28 rests at its lower side upon an anti-friction roller rotatably mounted in a cam member 56, this member being eccentrically secured upon a rock shaft 51 journaled in the lower part of the casing I2. This shaft extends without the casing and is provided with an actuating arm or crank 58 upon which is mounted a roller 59 designed to be actuated by a V-shaped camming member 60 secured to the cage 6 l. The arm 58 may be set at an angle of approximately 45 to the horizontal, as shown in Fig. 13, so that it will be cammed in the same direction upon the cars reaching the floor upon which the door is located whether the elevator is going in an up- .ward or downward direction. This movement of thearm 58, as will be obvious, will raise the actuating plate 28.

Upon the door I0 is secured a plate 62 having outwardly projecting spaced ears 63 and 64 to "which is secured a hollow bolt '65, the end of this bolt being closed by a plug 66 provided with a guide opening 61.

: With in the bolt is provided a pair of plungers 68 and 69. The plunger 68 is provided upon its right-hand end with a stem 16 disposed in the opening 61, and a spring ll surrounds the stem and bears against the plug 66 to urge the plunger toward the left. A pin 12 is secured to the plunger at the upper side thereof and projects into a slot 13 in the wall of the hollow bolt 65. The engagement of this pin in the slot '13 serves as a guide for the plunger and also limits the longitudinal movement of the plunger within the bolt.

The left-hand end of the bolt 65, as shown in Fig. 2, is closed by a plug 14, which is preferably formed of insulating material, and through this plug projects a stem 15 secured to the plunger 69. Upon the end of this stem is provided an antifriction roller 16 and a spring ll reacts between this roller and the member 14, which spring tends to urge the plunger 69 toward the left, as shown in this figure. This plunger is likewise provided with a pin 18 operating in a slot 19 in the bolt 65 to prevent rotary movement of the plunger and to limit the longitudinal movement thereof.

The left-hand face of the plunger 68, as shown in Fig. 2, is provided with an arcuately shaped recess 86 and the opposing face of the plunger 69 is provided with arcuate surfaces 81 and 82 for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

At its lower side the hollow bolt 65 is provided with an opening 83 communicating with the recess 23, and a latching member in the form of a ball 84 lies (when the door is closed) partly in the recess 23 and extends upwardly within the opening 83 in the bolt so that its upper portion is between the plunger-s 68 and69. As shown in Fig. 2, the ball 84 is so disposed that approximately the upper half thereof is within the bolt 65. In this position there will be no tendency for the ball to be cammed upwardly by the edge of the opening 83, and whatever tendency there might be in this direction will be overcome by the curved surface 82 of the plunger 69, which, in the position of the parts shown in Fig. 2, holds this ball downwardly in the cavity 23. It will be understood that at this time the ball contacts with the right-hand edge of the cavity 23 and prevents movement of the bolt 65 to the right and therefore prevents movement of the door I6 in an opening direction.

As shown in Fig. 12, a contact member 85 is provided upon the front or left-hand face of the block 14, which contact member closes the circuit between the contact members 44 and 45 when the door is closed, and this member '14 abuts the member 42.

The operation of the parts may be briefly described as follows:

When the door is closed, the lock mechanism is in the position shown more especially in Fig. 2, and as has just been described, the door is prevented from being opened in this position by engagement of the ball 84 against the right-hand portion of the recess 23 upon one side and against the edge of the opening 83 in the bolt 65 upon the other, or left-hand side. The ball is prevented from moving upwardly out of the cavity 23 by the arcuate or curved surface 82 of the plunger 69, this plunger being prevented from moving to the right to permit upward movement of the ball by contact of the roller 16 against the edge of the member 36.

When the elevator arrives opposite the floor upon which the door is located, the camming surface 69 upon the elevator cage 6| strikes the roller 59 and moves the arm 58 to the left, as shown in Fig. 13. This rocks the shaft 51, and by means of the cam 56 moves the actuating plate upwardly. During the initial movement of this plate, the member .35 :israised upwardly so that the stem 15 is forced outwardly by its spring intotherecess 31. -A continuedimovement of the plate zfl'upwardly causes the upper surface of this plate to engagethe collar 25, which will effect the lifting of the stem. 20 and move the. ball upwardly to the position shown in Fig. 3. This movement will'be permitted due to the fact that the plunger 68 will have been moved to the left byits spring, the roller "#6. entering the-recess.3l so that the plunger moves to a position out of contact with the ball, as shown inFig. 3. I

With the parts in the position in mg." 3, the

. doorwill still be releasably held in closedposition by the ball, although any slight pressure upon the door will serve to open it. The operator of the elevator may now grasp the handle (not shown) upon the door andmove it to open position. As the door moves to open position, the parts of the lock mechanism will assumethe position shown in Fig. 4. The ball willbe cammed upwardly into the hollow bolt due to its-engagement with the left-hand portion of the opening 83 in the bolt 1 65 and due to the 'fact that the plunger 68 is pressing against the ball due to the action of the spring 1|. As the door moves to the right, the plunger 68 carries the ball to the left in the bolt 65 to the position shown in Fig. 4 where the ball no longer registers with the opening and the opening is substantially closed by the plunger 68. It will be seen, therefore, thatthis provides against the balls dropping out of the opening when thedoor is open. Atthe fully opened posii tion of the door, the bolt 65 is, of course, withdrawn entirely from the lock casing.

-When'theroller16 on the stem 15 is withdrawn from the recess 31, the swinging lug 48, shown in Fig. 6, drops downwardly due to'the action of the spring 5| (or under the influence of gravity if. the spring is omitted),'and-the projection 59 drops into the recess .31, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6. When the door is open, it will be impossible to start the elevator due to the fact that the circuit a is open between thecontacts 44 and 45.

When the door is movedto closed position, the bolt 65 will enter between themembers i5 and IS with the parts in the position shown in Fig. 4. A continued movement of the door to the left will cause the roller 16 at the end of the stem 15 to contacts with the ball and holds it against movement to the left while the bolt 65 continues to move to the left. Contact of the ball with the plunger. 68.also holds it against movement during further movement of the hollow bolt. As a result, the ball moves to a position'over the opening 83 when the door is fully closed, as shown in- Fig. 5. It will be understood that at this time the elevator cage is still inthe same position and the plate 28 is held upwardly by engagement of the cam 60 on the cage with the roller 59. The stem ball with the edge of the'openin'g 83 will overcome any tendency of. the spring 'H'toopen the door. When the'elevator cage leavesthe floor and the cam 60 disengages theroller 59, the actuating plate and the stem 20 willbe =forced'downwardly. bythe springs 26, 34 and 35, and theball will drop into the position'shown in Fig. 2 wherein the door will be securely held against an opening movement. When the member 38 is carried downwardly with the stem 29 and actuating'plate 28, the member 50 will be cammed out of the recess 31 and the roller 16 will again abut the edge of the member 36, as shown in Fig. 2, andthe partswill all have been restored to their original position. I

In Figs. 8 and 11 of the drawings, I have shown a slightly modified form of bolt. This bolt 65*, instead of being of circular shape in cross section as is the bolt 65, is of rectangular shape. The rear end of the bolt is closed by a plug'fifi and withinthe bolt are the plungers 68 and 69 between whichis mounted a roller M which roller corresponds to the ball 84 shown in Fig. 2. It will be understood that the parts shown in Fig. 8 act in exactly the same manner as the corresponding parts previously described in connection with Figs. 1 to '7, the only difference being in the cross-sectional shape of the bolt and its associated parts. The roller 84 will, as shown in Fig. 11, be a filat-sided or disk-shaped member instead of a spherical ball, as is the member 84.

In Figs, 9 and 10, I have. illustrated a modification showing the application of my invention to a swinging door. In this instance, the door is shownat lil arranged to swing toward the right or clockwise about the hinge H3 and to abut the door casing or wall I I of the'elevator shaft upon which is secured the lock casing I2 2 In this instance, the bolt 65 corresponding to the bolt 55, shown inFigs. 1 to. 7, is hinged at 66* within a socket 6T secured to the doorby means of the bo1t'68 As shown more especially in Fig. 10, this bolt 65 will be permitted a slight swinging movement within the socket 51 about the pivot 66 so that owing to the change in angular position of the door, the bolt may enter the opening in the lock casing as the door is being closed. A spring 69 may be provided at one side of the bolt 65* to hold it in an angular position relatively to the socket, as shown in Fig. H], to insure that the bolt will be in a proper position to enter the opening in the casing. In other respects, this look for the swinging door is precisely like that for the sliding door shown in Figs. 1 to '7. In Fig. 13 of the drawings I have shown a'chain flflattached to the crank arm 58, the chain extending through the door casing or wallof the elevator shaft II and being provided at its outer end with a button or finger piece 9|. This renders the rocking of the crank arm 58 poss1ble by anyone on the floor of the building so that the door may be opened even when the cage is not opposite the floor. It will be understood that this is in the nature of an emergency means and not ordinarily used.

-Whi1e I have shown and described some preferred embodiments of my invention, it will be understood that it is not to be limited to all of the details shown, but is capable of modification and variation within the spirit of the invention and within the scope of the-appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a locking mechanism for elevator shafts and the like, a casing, a door movably mounted with respect to the casing, lock mechanism comprising a bolt member on the door, a housing upon the casing to receive said member, latching means carried by the bolt to secure said bolt to the housing to prevent opening of the door, and means in said housing actuated by the elevator cage to move said'latching means to "a position to permit opening of the door by pressure thereon in an opening direction.

2. In a door lock for elevator shafts or the like, a casing, a door movably mounted with respect to the casing, a bolt memberlupon the door, lock mechanism upon the casing comprising means to receive said bolt member, a latching member movably carried by the bolt member and adapted to project therefrom to engage a part of the lock mechanism and hold the door in closed position, and said lock mechanism comprising means to move said latching member to disengage it from said lock mechanism and release the door for opening movement.

3. In a door lock for elevator shafts or the like, a casing, a door movably mounted with respect to the casing, a bolt member upon the door, lock mechanism upon the casing comprising means to receive said bolt member, a latching member movably carried by the bolt member and adapted to project therefrom to engage a part of the lock mechanism and hold the door in closed position, and means disposed exteriorly of said bolt to move said latching member to disengage it from said lock mechanism and release the door for opening movement, said last named means including a rock shaft associated with the lock mechanism. 7

. 4. In a door lock for elevator shafts or the like, a casing, a door movably mounted with respect to the casing, a bolt member upon the door, lock mechanism. upon the casing comprising means to receive said bolt member, a latching member movably carried by the bolt member and adapted to project therefrom to engage a part of the lock mechanism and hold the door in closed position, and means to move said latching member to disengage it from said lock mechanism and release the door for opening movement, said last-named means including means operable by the elevator cage to engage and move the latching member.

5. In a door lock for elevator shafts or the like, a casing, a door movably mounted with respect to the casing, a bolt member upon the door, lock mechanism upon the casing comprising means to receive said bolt member, a latching member movably carried by the bolt member and adapted to project therefrom to engage a part of the lock mechanism and hold the door in closed position, and means to move said latching member to disengage it from said lock mechanism and release the door for opening movement, said last-named means comprising a rock shaft movably associated with the lock mechanism and actuated by the elevator cage to move the latching member.

6. In a lock for doors for elevator shafts and the like, a bolt mounted upon the door, an abutment mounted upon the door casing, a latching member movably associated with the bolt and adapted to project therefrom or be retracted therein to engage and disengage said abutment, and means movably associated with the door casing and actuated by the elevator cage to move said latching member from engagement with said abutment whereby the door may be opened by pressure applied thereto in an opening direction.

7. In a lock for doors for elevator shafts and the like, a bolt mounted upon the door, an abutment mounted upon the door casing, a latching member movably associated with the bolt and adapted to project therefrom or be moved therein to engage and disengage said abutment, and a member movably associated with the door casing and actuated by means on the elevator cage to move saidlatching member from engagement with said abutmentwhereby the door may be opened by pressure applied thereto in an opening direction.

8. Means for securing the doors of elevator shafts or the like comprising a hollow bolt member mounted upon the door, a lock casing mounted upon the door casing and provided with means to receive said bolt, alatching member movably mounted within the bolt, said bolt being provided with an opening through which the latching member may project when registering therewith, means in the lock casing to engage said latching member and hold the door in closed position, means in the lock casing to effect the movement of said latching member into the bolt, and means actuated by the elevator cage to actuate said lastnamed means.

9. Means for securing the doors of elevator shafts or the like comprising a hollow bolt member mounted upon the door, a lock casing mounted upon the door casing and provided with means to receive said bolt, a latching member movably mounted within the bolt, said bolt being provided with an opening through which the latching member may project when registering therewith, means in the lock casing to engage said latching member and hold the door in closed position, means in the lock casing to effect the movemcnt of said latching member into the bolt, means actuated by the elevator cage to actuate said last-named means, and a plunger within said bolt to move the latching memberout of registration with said opening when the door is opened;

10. Means for securing the doors of elevator shafts or the like comprising a hollow bolt member mounted upon the door, a lock casing mounted upon the door casing and provided with means to receive said bolt, a latching member movably mounted within the bolt, said bolt being provided with an opening through which the latching member may project when registering therewith, means in the lock casing to engage said latching member and hold the door in closed position, means in the lock casing to effect the movement of said latching member into, the bolt, means actuated by the elevator cage to actuate said lastnamed means, and a plunger mounted within the bolt and adapted to move said latching member to a projecting position when the door is closed.

11. Means for securing the doors of elevator shafts or the like comprising a hollow bolt member mounted upon the door, a lock casing mounted upon the door casing and provided with means to receive said bolt, a latching member movably mounted within the bolt, said bolt being provided with an opening through which the latching member may project when registering therewith, means in the lock casing to engage said latching member and hold the door in closed position, means in the lock casing to effect the movement of said latching member into the bolt, means actuated by the elevator cage to actuate said lastnamed means, a plunger mounted within the bolt and adapted to move said latching member to a projecting position when'the door is closed, said plunger having a part projecting from the bolt, and means in the lock casing to engage said part to actuate the plunger.

12. Means for securing the doors of elevator shafts or the like comprising a hollow bolt member mounted upon the door, a lock casing moimted upon the door casing and provided with means to receive said bolt, a latching member movably mounted within the bolt, said bolt being provided with an opening through which the latching member may project when registering therewith, means in the lock casing to engage said latching member and hold the door in closed position, means in the lock casing to effect the movement of said latching member into the bolt, means actuated by the elevator cage to actuate said lastna-med means, a plunger mounted Within the bolt and adapted to move said latching member to a projecting position when the door is closed, said plunger having a part projecting from the bolt, and means in the lock casing to engage said part to actuate the plunger, said engaging means being moved to inoperative position by said cage.- actuated means.

13. Means for securing in closed position the door of an elevator shaft or the like comprising a lock casing on the door casing and a hollow bolt mounted upon the door, a latching member mounted to move longitudinally within the bolt, a spring-pressed plunger within the bolt upon each side of said latching member to effect movement thereof in opposite directions, said bolt having an opening through which the latching member projects when moved in registration therewith, means in the casing to engage said latching member when in projecting position to hold the door closed, and means to move said latching member to non-projecting position to release the door comprising a slidable member to engage the latching member and a rocking member actuated by the elevator cage to engage said slidable member.

14. Means for securing in closed position the door of an elevator shaft or the like comprising a lock casing on the door casing and a hollo: bolt mounted upon the door, a latching member mounted to move longitudinally within the bolt, a spring-pressed plunger within the bolt upon each side of said latching member to effect move ment thereof in opposite directions, said bolt having an opening through which the latching member projects when moved in registration therewith, means in the casing to engage said latching member when in projecting position to hold the door closed, and means to move said latching member to non-projecting position to release the door comprising a slidable member to engage the latching member and a rocking member actuated by the elevator cage to engage said slidable member, said rocking member comprising a cam engaging said slidable member and a rock shaft to which said cam is secured.

15. Means for securing in closed position the door of an elevator shaft or the like comprising a lock casing on the door casing and a hollow bolt mounted upon the door, a latching member mounted to move longitudinally within the bolt, a spring-pressed plunger within the bolt upon each side of said latching member to effect movement thereof in opposite directions, said bolt having an opening through which the latching member projects when moved in registration therewith, means in the casing to engage said latching member when in projecting position to hold the door closed, means to move said latching member to non-projecting position to release the door comprising a slidable ,member to engage the latching member and a rocking member actuated by the elevator cage to engage said slidable member, and means movably mounted in said lock casing to engage one of said plungers when the door is closed to move the latching member in registration with said opening, said means being actuated by said rocking member.

16. Means for securing in closed position the door of an elevator shaft or the like comprising a lock casing on the door casing and a hollow bolt mounted upon the door, a latching member mounted to move longitudinally within the bolt, a spring-pressed plunger within the bolt upon each side of said latching member to effect movement thereof in opposite directions, said bolt having an opening through which the latching member projects when moved in registration therewith, means in the casing to engage said latching member when in projecting position to hold the door closed, means to move said latching member to non-projecting position to release the door comprising a slidable member to engage the latching member and a rocking member actuated by the elevator cage to engage said slidable member, and means movably mounted in said lock casing to engage one of said plungers when the door is closed to move the latching member in registration with said opening, said means being actuated by said rocking member, and said slidable member having a lost-motion connection with said rocking member.

17. In a lock for doors for elevator shafts and the like, a door casing, a door movably mounted with respect to the casing, a bolt member upon the door, lock mechanism upon the casing comprising means to receive said bolt member, a latching member movably carried by the bolt member and adapted to project therefrom and engage a part of the lock mechanism and hold the door in closed position, means to move said latching member to disengage it from said lock mechanism and release the door for opening movement, said last-named means comprising a rock shaft movably associated with the lock mechanism, and means on the elevator cage to actuate said rock shaft.

18. In a lock for doors for elevator shafts and the like, a bolt mounted upon the door, a latching member movably associated with the bolt and adapted to project therefrom or be contained therein, means upon the door casing to engage said latching member when in projectposition, means movably associated with the door casing to move the latching member to nonprojecting position whereby the door may be opened by pressure applied thereto in an opening direction, and means on the elevator cage to actuate said last-named means.

i.9..In a securing means for doors for elevator shafts and the like, a door and a door casing, a tubular bolt on one of said members, a rolling member mounted to roll freely within said bolt and adapted to project through an opening in the wall of the bolt, 2. member to cooperate with the tubular bolt and engage said rolling member to hold the door in closed position, and means to move said rolling member out of engagement with said engaging member to permit opening of the door.

CHARLES F. EISENBART. 

